Leveraging our Global Alumni Network and the Latest Technology to Enhance Career Readiness
Preparing Our Students for Career Success
At Schulich, we’re committed to delivering a world-class learning experience that sets our graduates up for career success. Our goal: to ensure that when students graduate, they’re not just stepping into the workforce – they’re launching their careers with the right skills and connections they need to succeed.
One way we’re doing that is by leveraging our global alumni network and tapping into their rich expertise across a wide range of business careers, industries and organizations. And another way we’re doing that is through the rapid and strategic adoption of new technologies. Our newly revamped Alumni Mentorship program combines both approaches, creating a dynamic way for students to build professional networks and gain career insights.
In this month’s column by Christina Niederwanger, Executive Director of Advancement & Alumni Engagement, we show how we’re embedding AI into our alumni mentor matching process, making it easier than ever for students to connect with the mentor best suited to guide them. By considering shared industries, job roles, and academic backgrounds, AI helps us create personalized matches, so students can get the advice and insights that matter most for their career journey. And we’re also integrating core competencies such as leadership and critical thinking into the matching process, ensuring that students receive mentorship tailored to their personal growth and career goals.
I invite you to read how we’re matching alumni mentors with our students to help make them career ready – part of our comprehensive process for developing the business leaders of tomorrow.
Best,
Detlev Zwick, PhD
Dean, Tanna H. Schulich Chair in Digital Marketing Strategy
Schulich’s Alumni2Student Mentorship Program: Leveraging our Global Alumni Network and the Latest Technology to Enhance Our Students’ Career Readiness
The newly revamped Alumni2Student (A2S) Mentorship Program that launched this fall embodies Schulich’s forward-thinking approach to student success by leveraging innovative technologies and strategic alumni engagement to equip students with the skills and connections they need to thrive in an ever-evolving business landscape.
The A2S Mentorship Program, one of the flagship student services offered by the Office of Advancement and Alumni Engagement, is designed to foster relationships between current students and experienced alumni. The program is built around our global alumni community, which plays a vital role in supporting students’ career readiness by offering personalized guidance, career insights, and opportunities to develop the professional skills essential in today’s competitive marketplace.
Embedding AI into the Mentorship Match Process
This year, we’ve added several exciting new features and technological advancements to ensure that the mentorship experience is both impactful and easy to navigate. Through our Schulich Alumni Hub, we’ve integrated an AI-powered auto-matching system that pairs students with mentors based on shared industries, job functions, and academic backgrounds. This innovation allows for more accurate and personalized matches, ensuring that students connect with mentors who can provide them with the most relevant insights for their career path. To date, we’ve had over 500 students register, and more than 300 students have already created a profile on the Hub and have been successfully matched.
An added feature of the revamped A2S program is the inclusion of the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Career Readiness core competencies. Students can now search for mentors based on the specific career readiness skills they aim to develop, such as leadership, critical thinking, and teamwork. This innovative approach ensures that our students are receiving mentorship that is tailored to their personal growth and career ambitions.
And lastly, we’ve shifted toward a more focused mentorship experience – three 30-minute meetings over 90 days. This format allows both alumni mentors and student mentees to maximize their time while achieving clear, attainable milestones. These interactions not only help students explore career paths but also build essential skills in time management, networking, and communication.
The success of this program lies in its flexibility and accessibility. By offering a combination of auto-matching and manual mentor selection, we give students greater control over their mentorship experience. Students can either allow the platform to suggest the best mentor based on degree, specialization, industry, and job function, or they can manually browse the alumni directory to find someone whose expertise aligns with their own professional goals. This flexibility empowers students to be active participants in their own development, a key part of the strategic career design approach we’re building at Schulich.
For our alumni mentors, this program provides a streamlined, user-friendly experience. With automatic reminders and easy-to-navigate tools on the Schulich Alumni Hub, the program fits seamlessly into even the busiest schedules. Mentors can engage with students, share their industry insights, and help guide them through career decisions without feeling overwhelmed by time commitments.
We’ve also invested in new educational resources to enhance the mentorship experience for both mentors and mentees. Updated handbooks offer comprehensive guidance on how to make the most out of each interaction, and we’ve developed an educational video to help students understand the value of mentorship and professional networking etiquette.
Our alumni are uniquely positioned to offer invaluable guidance and career insights. Having been through Schulich’s rigorous programs, they understand the academic demands and the skills required to succeed in a fast-paced, global business environment. Most of all, their diverse experiences and industry expertise provide invaluable perspectives that help bridge the gap between classroom learning and real-world application.
The A2S Mentorship Program is just one example of how Schulich is staying ahead of the curve by integrating technology and leveraging the power of our networks and partners to prepare students for success.
Whether it’s through AI-powered matching, the focus on career competencies, or the added resources designed to enhance mentor-mentee relationships, the program exemplifies Schulich’s commitment to innovation and student success.
Christina Niederwanger
Executive Director, Advancement & Alumni Engagement